The Consummate Cowboy. Sara Orwig

stretched between them while Emily thought about all he had told her. “Zach, how do the children get along? Do they miss their mother terribly?”

      “No, they don’t. Rebecca remembers her the most. But Amber never was a mother for them. Not from the first moment. She didn’t want to have either one of them. She thought she was protected. She had surgery after Jason to make absolutely certain she’d never have another baby.”

      Emily flinched, hating Amber’s rejection of her children, thinking how foolishly Amber had tossed away two precious children and a man who loved her. “I’ve never understood my sister.”

      “Yeah, well, that’s all the more reason to go back to Chicago tomorrow.” Abruptly, he walked toward the bathroom, obviously having talked all he wanted to on the subject of Stoney Fogg. “You can have the bathroom first. Towels are in the cabinet and I’ll leave you a new toothbrush. Open the bathroom door on my side when you’re out.”

      “Thanks.”

      He left, and she heard the door to his bedroom close behind him. She went to the large bathroom, and looked at his green towel hung carelessly on a rack. His razor and shaving cream were laid out near the sink. A new purple toothbrush, still in the package, was propped beside lotion bottles. She turned the lock on the door and peeled off her clothes, stepping into the footed tub and pulling a shower curtain around it. But all the while her mind was on what he had told her. Where was Amber and what kind of trouble had she gotten into this time?

      Removing his boots, Zach felt the tension knot his stomach. He hated having old memories of Amber dredged up. Would the woman ever be completely out of his life? Emily was a surprise, though. She was so unlike her irresponsible sister and father. He clenched his jaw. But she was bound to be like them in some ways, and even a little would be intolerable. In the morning he would get her to her car, and then forget her and Amber. He was certainly not going to help her search for Amber. He would find out if Stoney was around, and check out the list from the bartender, but that was all. Nothing more. Then he would send Emily Stockton on her way.

      When water splashed in the tub, he glanced at the closed bathroom door without seeing it, his thoughts going beyond the door to the shower. Erotic images danced in his mind of Emily beneath the silvery spray of water, and his imagination ran wild. Her skin was rosy and beautiful, her waist tiny. The navy T-shirt had clung to inviting curves and the jeans had revealed long legs. He had no trouble imagining her without the clothes.

      Annoyed with himself, he growled and moved across the room. Impatiently, he emptied his pockets and tossed keys and coins on a mahogany chest of drawers, trying to stop thinking about Emily—and failing. Her remark about not having children floated in his mind. She couldn’t have a baby. Could that be part of why she didn’t date much?

      He glared at the bathroom door, hands on hips, and voiced his mission aloud. “Get up in the morning and take her to her car and forget her.” He looked at himself in the mirror. “Did you get that, Durham? The lady is stubborn and does what she wants. She’s of age and she’s got the same blood in her veins as your ex. Don’t get involved.” He gave a firm nod and walked to the window to turn the shutters and look outside. Lights shone over the grounds and on the hard-packed dusty drive.

      Who had burned Amber’s car? What was Amber involved in? And could searching for her sister put Emily in danger?

      He glanced at the bathroom door again. The water had stopped running and he could imagine Emily toweling dry. He groaned as his body responded to his thoughts. “Go home, Emily Stockton. Get out of my life.”

      Emily pulled on the chambray shirt that smelled freshly laundered. It was worn, with little threads showing along the frayed collar. Her skin tingled as she thought about the shirt’s owner and remembered his hands moving on her shoulders and neck, giving her the firm massage that had helped extinguish her headache. He was a very appealing man. And he might be right about Amber. But danger or not, she had to try to find her sister.

      She brushed her teeth, gathered her things and unlocked the bathroom door. When she opened it, Zach turned to face her. He stood barechested and barefooted, the top button of his jeans unfastened. Surprised to find him only yards away, she stared at him, wondering whether he had been waiting to get into the bathroom. His gaze drifted down over her and back up again, and she felt her body tingle as if in that slow assessment he had run his hands over her.

      Zach knew he was staring, but he couldn’t stop. Her hair was a curly halo around her head. The shirt hid her figure, but it ended mid-thigh and revealed long, long shapely legs. His body tightened and responded, just looking at her. He drew a deep breath and met her wide-eyed gaze. Against all better judgment, he was drawn to her. He moved slowly closer. “My shirt never looked so good.”

      “Thank you, I suppose,” she said as if she couldn’t get her breath. She didn’t take her eyes from his as she waved her hand. “You can have the bathroom now.”

      Emily’s pulse drummed when he came closer. He stopped only inches away and reached out to touch her hair. “I can’t believe you don’t date.”

      “I have a demanding job that I love,” she said.

      He shook his head. “There has to be more to it than that. Sour love affair, someone hurt you, something....”

      She bit her lip as she stared at him. “My sister hasn’t been an example to copy,” she said, and saw a flicker in the depths of his eyes. Had she hurt him with her blunt answer? “I can’t imagine passing on the genes that I carry.”

      “That’s the reason?” he asked with arched eyebrows. “I thought you meant there was a physical problem.”

      “No. My family life isn’t the best. I’m afraid of passing on their mistakes. I’m afraid of becoming like them. My family is worse than the Foggs you told me about. My father is in prison.” She was barely aware of what she was saying. She could feel the tension crackle between them. Then Zach’s gaze lowered to her mouth and her breathing stopped. She wanted to lean toward him, close her eyes, and let him kiss her. Yet, she knew that was foolhardy in the extreme. All she had to do was remember that he was her ex-brother-in-law.

      “That’s no reason for you to avoid dating or marriage or having children,” he said roughly. “My children carry those same genes and they’re good kids.”

      “I hope and pray they are,” she answered, suddenly sorry if she was hurting his feelings. “But I’ve had a lifetime of seeing nothing but disaster in my family.” Tension reigned between them, along with an undercurrent of dangerous attraction, and Emily knew she needed to get away.

      “Good night,” she said quickly, turning and almost running, closing the door on her side of the bathroom and leaning against it.

      “Emily?”

      His voice startled her. He was only inches away on the other side of the door. She jumped and then turned to stare at the door. “Yes?”

      “What time do you want me to call you in the morning?”

      “Whenever you get up.”

      “Since it’s almost half-past four now, I’ll sleep in until six.”

      “Then call me at six.”

      “Good night.”

      She tried to busy herself, listening as the water turned on. She could imagine Zach in the shower, remembering clearly how his bare chest and back looked. In minutes, the water stopped. Soon the door opened slightly, and she heard the other bathroom door close as he went to his bedroom.

      She sighed and stared into the darkness. Zach said she might be in danger if she kept searching for Amber. Should she do as he urged, and go home? She knew Amber was unreliable, flighty, and could easily be off with some man now, forgetting any danger she might put Emily in. But on the phone Amber had begged for help and had sounded sincerely terrified of a man.

      Emily knew she couldn’t go home and forget about her sister. If she did nothing, and something happened to Amber,